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Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, is introducing paid subscriptions in the UK for users who prefer an ad-free experience. The company announced that it will begin notifying users in the coming weeks, allowing them to opt for a subscription to access the platforms without advertisements. While EU users can already subscribe starting at €5.99 (£5) per month for an ad-free experience, UK subscriptions will begin at a lower price of £2.99 per month.
"It will give people in the UK a clear choice about whether their data is used for personalised advertising, while preserving the free access and value that the ads-supported internet creates for people, businesses and platforms," Meta said.
But UK users will not have an option to not pay and see "less personalised" adverts - a feature Meta added for EU users after regulators raised concerns.
The changes come after the UK's data watchdog, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), published guidance for firms about ad-free subscriptions earlier this year. The advertising model, known as "consent or pay", has emerged as a way for owners of digital platforms to generate revenue from users who decline to be tracked across its services and other sites.
News publishers are among those which have adopted the mechanism in the UK so far - often asking users to "accept all" tracking cookies or "reject and pay".
Meta said its own model would see its subscription for no ads cost £2.99 a month on the web or £3.99 a month on iOS and Android apps - with the higher fee to offset cuts taken from transactions by Apple and Google.
The ICO welcomed the move, describing it as an important shift in the company's existing approach to targeting users with personalised adverts.
